industries and test ranges scattered throughout the country pose
health risks for humans and animals; industrial pollution is severe
in some cities; because the two main rivers that flowed into the
Aral Sea have been diverted for irrigation, it is drying up and
leaving behind a harmful layer of chemical pesticides and natural
salts; these substances are then picked up by the wind and blown
into noxious dust storms; pollution in the Caspian Sea; soil
pollution from overuse of agricultural chemicals and salination from
poor infrastructure and wasteful irrigation practices
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography - note:
landlocked; Russia leases approximately 6,000 sq km of territory
enclosing the Baykonur Cosmodrome; in January 2004, Kazakhstan and
Russia extended the lease to 2050
People ::Kazakhstan
Population:
15,460,484 (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 63
Age structure:
0-14 years: 21.8% (male 1,717,469/female 1,643,920)
15-64 years: 70.2% (male 5,279,292/female 5,534,607)
65 years and over: 7.9% (male 426,494/female 797,655) (2010 est.)
Median age:
total: 29.9 years
male: 28.4 years
female: 31.6 years (2010 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.399% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 160
Birth rate:
16.66 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 122
Death rate:
9.39 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 64
Net migration rate:
-3.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 186
Urbanization:
urban population: 58% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 1.2% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.058 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.53 male(s)/female
total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 24.93 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 84
male: 29.29 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 20.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 68.19 years
country comparison to the world: 152
male: 62.91 years
female: 73.78 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.87 children born/woman (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 150
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.1% (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 121
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
12,000 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 97
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
fewer than 500 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 97
Nationality:
noun: Kazakhstani(s)
adjective: Kazakhstani
Ethnic groups:
Kazakh (Qazaq) 53.4%, Russian 30%, Ukrainian 3.7%, Uzbek 2.5%,
German 2.4%, Tatar 1.7%, Uighur 1.4%, other 4.9% (1999 census)
Religions:
Muslim 47%, Russian Orthodox 44%, Protestant 2%, other 7%
Languages:
Kazakh (Qazaq, state language) 64.4%, Russian (official, used in
everyday business, designated the "language of interethnic
communication") 95% (2001 est.)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.5%
male: 99.8%
female: 99.3% (1999 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 15 years
male: 15 years
female: 15 years (2009)
Education expenditures:
2.8% of GDP (2007)
country comparison to the world: 156
Government ::Kazakhstan
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Kazakhstan
conventional short form: Kazakhstan
local long form: Qazaqstan Respublikasy
local short form: Qazaqstan
former: Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic
Government type:
republic; authoritarian presidential rule, with little power outside
the executive branch
Capital:
name: Astana
geographic coordinates: 51 10 N, 71 25 E
time difference: UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
note: Kazakhstan is divided into two time zones
Administrative divisions:
14 provinces (oblystar, singular - oblys) and 3 cities* (qalalar,
singular - qala); Almaty Oblysy, Almaty Qalasy*, Aqmola Oblysy
(Astana), Aqtobe Oblysy, Astana Qalasy*, Atyrau Oblysy, Batys
Qazaqstan Oblysy [West Kazakhstan] (Oral), Bayqongyr Qalasy
[Baykonur]*, Mangghystau Oblysy (Aqtau), Ongtustik Qazaqstan Oblysy
[South Kazakhstan] (Shymkent), Pavlodar Oblysy, Qaraghandy Oblysy,
Qostanay Oblysy, Qyzylorda Oblysy, Shyghys Qazaqstan Oblysy [East
Kazakhstan] (Oskemen), Soltustik Qazaqstan Oblysy (Petropavlovsk),
Zhambyl Oblysy (Taraz)
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their
administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center
name following in parentheses); in 1995, the Governments of
Kazakhstan and Russia entered into an agreement whereby Russia would
lease for a period of 20 years an area of 6,000 sq km enclosing the
Baykonur space launch facilities and the city of Bayqongyr
(Baykonur, formerly Leninsk); in 2004, a new agreement extended the
lease to 2050
Independence:
16 December 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 16 December (1991)
Constitution:
first post-independence constitution adopted 28 January 1993; new
constitution adopted by national referendum 30 August 1995
Legal system:
based on Islamic law and Roman law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV (chairman of the
Supreme Soviet from 22 February 1990, elected president 1 December
1991)
head of government: Prime Minister Karim MASIMOV (since 10 January
2007); First Deputy Prime Minister Umirzak SHUKEYEV (since 3 March
2009), Deputy Prime Ministers Yerbol ORYNBAYEV (since 29 October
2007), Aset ISEKESHEV (since 12 March 2010)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
(For more information visit the World Leaders website )
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
election last held on 4 December 2005 (next to be held in 2012);
prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the
president, with Mazhilis approval; note - constitutional amendments
of May 2007 shortened the presidential term from seven years to five
years and established a two-consecutive-term limit; changes will
take effect after NAZARBAYEV's term ends; he, and only he, is
allowed to run for president indefinitely
election results: Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV reelected president;
percent of vote - Nursultan A. NAZARBAYEV 91.1%, Zharmakhan A.
TUYAKBAY 6.6%, Alikhan M. BAYMENOV 1.6%
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (47 seats; 15 members
are appointed by the president; 32 members elected by local
assemblies; members serve six-year terms, but elections are
staggered with half of the members up for re-election every three
years) and the Mazhilis (107 seats; 9 out of the 107 Mazhilis
members elected by the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan, a
presidentially appointed advisory body designed to represent the
country's ethnic minorities; non-appointed members are popularly
elected to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - (indirect) last held in October 2008 (next to be
held in 2011); Mazhilis - last held on 18 August 2007 (next to be
held in 2012)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by
party - Nur Otan 16; Mazhilis - percent of vote by party - Nur-Otan
88.1%, NSDP 4.6%, Ak Zhol 3.3%, Auyl 1.6%, Communist People's Party
1.3%, Patriots Party 0.8% Ruhaniyat 0.4%; seats by party - Nur-Otan
98; note - parties had to achieve a threshold of 7% of the
electorate to qualify for seats in the Mazhilis; changes to
electoral legislation enacted since the 2007 election now ensure
that the second-placed party will enter the Majilis at the next
parliamentary election, even if it does not clear the 7% threshold
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (44 members); Constitutional Council (seven members)
Political parties and leaders:
Adilet (Justice) [Maksut NARIKBAYEV, Zeynulla ALSHIMBAYEV, Serik
ABDRAHMANOV, Bakhytbek AKHMETZHAN, Yerkin ONGARBAYEV, Tolegan
SYDYKOV] (formerly Democratic Party of Kazakhstan); Agrarian and
Industrial Union of Workers Block or AIST (Agrarian Party and Civic
Party); Ak Zhol Party (Bright Path) [Alikhan BAYMENOV]; Alga
[Vladimir KOZLOV] (unregistered); Auyl (Village) [Gani KALIYEV];
Azat (Freedom) Party [Bolat ABILOV] (formerly True Ak Zhol Party);
Azat NSDP [co-chaired by Bolat ABILOV and Zharmakhan TUYAKBAY]; Azat
and NSDP united in 2009, but the authorities have refused to
register Azat NSDP as a single party; Communist Party of Kazakhstan
or KPK [Serikbolsyn ABDILDIN]; Communist People's Party of
Kazakhstan [Vladislav KOSAREV]; National Social Democratic Party or
NSDP [Zharmakhan TUYAKBAY]; Nur-Otan [Bakhytzhan ZHUMAGULOV] (the
Agrarian, Asar, and Civic parties merged with Otan); Patriots' Party
[Gani KASYMOV]; Rukhaniyat (Spirituality) [Altynshash ZHAGANOVA]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Adil-Soz [Tamara KALEYEVA]; Almaty Helsinki Committee [Ninel
FOKINA]; Confederation of Free Trade Unions [Sergei BELKIN]; For
Fair Elections [Yevgeniy ZHOVTIS (jailed), Sabit ZHUSUPOV, Sergey
DUVANOV, Ibrash NUSUPBAYEV]; Kazakhstan International Bureau on
Human Rights [Yevgeniy ZHOVTIS, executive director]; Pan-National
Social Democratic Party of Kazakhstan [Zharmakhan TUYAKBAY];
Pensioners Movement or Pokoleniye [Irina SAVOSTINA, chairwoman];
Republican Network of International Monitors [Dos KUSHIM];
Transparency International [Sergey ZLOTNIKOV]
International organization participation:
ADB, CICA, CIS, CSTO, EAEC, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, FAO, GCTU, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS
(observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SCO, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer), ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Yerlan IDRISSOV
chancery: 1401 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 232-5488
FAX: [1] (202) 232-5845
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
consulate(s): New York
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Richard E. HOAGLAND
embassy: Ak Bulak 4, Str. 23-22, Building #3, Astana 010010
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [7] (7172) 70-21-00
FAX: [7] (7172) 34-08-90
Flag description:
a gold sun with 32 rays above a soaring golden steppe eagle, both
centered on a sky blue background; the hoist side displays a
national ornamental pattern "koshkar-muiz" (the horns of the ram) in
gold; the blue color is of religious significance to the Turkic
peoples of the country, and so symbolizes cultural and ethnic unity;
it also represents the endless sky as well as water; the sun, a
source of life and energy, exemplifies wealth and plenitude; the
sun's rays are shaped like grain, which is the basis of abundance
and prosperity; the eagle has appeared on the flags of Kazakh tribes
for centuries and represents freedom, power, and the flight to the
future
National anthem:
name: "Menin Qazaqstanim" (My Kazakhstan)
lyrics/music: Zhumeken NAZHIMEDENOV and Nursultan NAZARBAYEV/Shamshi
KALDAYAKOV
note: adopted 2006; President Nursultan NAZARBAYEV played a role in
revising the lyrics
Economy ::Kazakhstan
Economy - overview:
Kazakhstan, geographically the largest of the former Soviet
republics, excluding Russia, possesses enormous fossil fuel reserves
and plentiful supplies of other minerals and metals, such as
uranium, copper, and zinc. It also has a large agricultural sector
featuring livestock and grain. Kazakhstan's industrial sector is
primarily focused on the extraction and processing of these natural
resources. Kazakhstan enjoyed double-digit growth in 2000-01 and 8%
or more per year in 2002-07 - thanks largely to its booming energy
sector but also to economic reform, good harvests, and increased
foreign investment; GDP growth slowed dramatically following the
near-collapse of the banking sector in late 2007 and the declines in
oil and metals prices associated with the global economic downturn
in 2008-09. Kazakhstan has embarked upon an industrial policy
designed to diversify the economy away from overdependence on the
oil sector as well expanding export markets away from its historical
reliance on Russia. Nevertheless, growth is still driven by oil. The
government has engaged in several disputes with Western oil
companies over the terms of production agreements, most recently,
with regard to the Kashagan project in 2007-08 and the Karachaganak
project in 2009.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$193.8 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 54
$184.8 billion (2009 est.)
$182.6 billion (2008 est.)
note: data are in 2010 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$129.8 billion (2010 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4.9% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 60
1.2% (2009 est.)
3.3% (2008 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$12,500 (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 92
$12,000 (2009 est.)
$11,900 (2008 est.)
note: data are in 2010 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 6%
industry: 42.8%
services: 51.2% (2009 est.)
Labor force:
8.718 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 53
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 31.5%
industry: 18.4%
services: 50% (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate:
5.5% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 52
6.3% (2009 est.)
Population below poverty line:
12.1% (2008)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.3%
highest 10%: 26.5% (2004 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
28.8 (2008)
country comparison to the world: 119
31.5 (2003)
Investment (gross fixed):
27.9% of GDP (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 26
Public debt:
15.9% of GDP (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 118
14.2% of GDP (2009 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
6.7% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 171
7.3% (2009 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
7% (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 42
10.5% (31 December 2008)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
NA% (31 December 2008)
Stock of narrow money:
$20.91 billion (31 December 2010 est)
country comparison to the world: 63
$16.66 billion (31 December 2009 est)
Stock of broad money:
$65.55 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 62
$52.83 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Stock of domestic credit:
$44.53 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 66
$39.72 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$57.66 billion (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 54
$31.08 billion (31 December 2008)
$41.38 billion (31 December 2007)
Agriculture - products:
grain (mostly spring wheat), cotton; livestock
Industries:
oil, coal, iron ore, manganese, chromite, lead, zinc, copper,
titanium, bauxite, gold, silver, phosphates, sulfur, iron and steel;
tractors and other agricultural machinery, electric motors,
construction materials
Industrial production growth rate:
7.3% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
Electricity - production:
78.4 billion kWh (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 37
Electricity - consumption:
77.9 billion kWh (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 35
Electricity - exports:
3.617 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
1.94 billion kWh (2009 est.)
Oil - production:
1.54 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 19
Oil - consumption:
241,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 51
Oil - exports:
1.345 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 18
Oil - imports:
164,000 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 52
Oil - proved reserves:
30 billion bbl (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 11
Natural gas - production:
35.61 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 24
Natural gas - consumption:
33.68 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 27
Natural gas - exports:
17.66 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 12
Natural gas - imports:
3.72 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 35
Natural gas - proved reserves:
2.407 trillion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 15
Current account balance:
$6.993 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 28
-$3.405 billion (2009 est.)
Exports:
$59.23 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 47
$43.84 billion (2009 est.)
Exports - commodities:
oil and oil products 59%, ferrous metals 19%, chemicals 5%,
machinery 3%, grain, wool, meat, coal
Exports - partners:
China 16.34%, France 9.23%, Germany 8.32%, Russia 6.9%, Ukraine
5.52%, Romania 5.25%, Italy 5.12%, US 4.34% (2009)
Imports:
$30.11 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 59
$28.77 billion (2009 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, metal products, foodstuffs
Imports - partners:
Russia 28.5%, China 26.72%, Germany 6.59%, Italy 5.58%, Ukraine 4.8%
(2009)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$32.44 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
$23.22 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Debt - external:
$94.44 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
$106.3 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$83.3 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39
$69.46 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$7.208 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 53
$5.708 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
Exchange rates:
tenge (KZT) per US dollar - 147.28 (2010), 147.5 (2009), 120.25
(2008), 122.55 (2007), 126.09 (2006)
Communications ::Kazakhstan
Telephones - main lines in use:
3.763 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 42
Telephones - mobile cellular:
14.995 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 50
Telephone system:
general assessment: inherited an outdated telecommunications network
from the Soviet era requiring modernization
domestic: intercity by landline and microwave radio relay; number of
fixed-line connections is gradually increasing and fixed-line
teledensity now roughly 25 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular usage is
increasing and the subscriber base now is roughly 100 per 100 persons
international: country code - 7; international traffic with other
former Soviet republics and China carried by landline and microwave
radio relay and with other countries by satellite and by the
Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic cable; satellite earth stations
- 2 Intelsat (2008)
Broadcast media:
state owns nearly all radio and TV transmission facilities and
operates national TV and radio networks; nearly all nationwide TV
networks are wholly or partly owned by the government; some former
state-owned media outlets have been privatized and are controlled by
the president's daughter, who heads the Khabar Agency that runs
multiple TV and radio stations; a number of privately-owned TV
stations; households with satellite dishes have access to foreign
media; a small number of commercial radio stations operating along
with state-run radio stations (2008)
Internet country code:
.kz
Internet hosts:
53,984 (2010)
country comparison to the world: 85
Internet users:
5.299 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 44
Transportation ::Kazakhstan
Airports:
97 (2010)
country comparison to the world: 62
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 65
over 3,047 m: 10
2,438 to 3,047 m: 26
1,524 to 2,437 m: 16
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 8 (2010)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 32
over 3,047 m: 5
2,438 to 3,047 m: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 13 (2010)
Heliports:
3 (2010)
Pipelines:
condensate 658 km; gas 11,146 km; oil 10,376 km; refined products
1,095 km (2009)
Railways:
total: 15,082 km
country comparison to the world: 19
broad gauge: 15,082 km 1.520-m gauge (3,700 km electrified) (2008)
Roadways:
total: 93,612 km
country comparison to the world: 51
paved: 84,100 km
unpaved: 9,512 km (2008)
Waterways:
4,000 km; on the Ertis (Irtysh) River (80%) and Syr Darya
(Syrdariya) River (2008)
country comparison to the world: 26
Merchant marine:
total: 8
country comparison to the world: 123
by type: petroleum tanker 6, refrigerated cargo 1, specialized
tanker 1
foreign-owned: 1 (Ireland 1) (2010)
Ports and terminals:
Aqtau (Shevchenko), Atyrau (Gur'yev), Oskemen (Ust-Kamenogorsk),
Pavlodar, Semey (Semipalatinsk)
Military ::Kazakhstan
Military branches:
Kazakhstani Armed Forces: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Mobile Forces,
Air Defense Forces (2010)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service
obligation - 2 years; minimum age for volunteers NA (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 4,176,999
females age 16-49: 4,202,422 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 2,902,859
females age 16-49: 3,543,467 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 133,884
female: 127,415 (2010 est.)
Military expenditures:
1.1% of GDP (2010)
country comparison to the world: 128
Transnational Issues ::Kazakhstan
Disputes - international:
Kyrgyzstan has yet to ratify the 2001 boundary delimitation with
Kazakhstan; field demarcation of the boundaries with Turkmenistan
commenced in 2005, and with Uzbekistan in 2004; demarcation is
scheduled to get underway with Russia in 2007; demarcation with
China was completed in 2002; creation of a seabed boundary with
Turkmenistan in the Caspian Sea remains under discussion;
equidistant seabed treaties have been ratified with Azerbaijan and
Russia in the Caspian Sea, but no resolution has been made on
dividing the water column among any of the littoral states
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 3,700 (Russia); 508 (Afghanistan)
(2007)
Illicit drugs:
significant illicit cultivation of cannabis for CIS markets, as well
as limited cultivation of opium poppy and ephedra (for the drug
ephedrine); limited government eradication of illicit crops; transit
point for Southwest Asian narcotics bound for Russia and the rest of
Europe; significant consumer of opiates
page last updated on January 12, 2011
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@Kenya (Africa)
Introduction ::Kenya
Background: